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Makah still waiting to make first kill

© Matt Villano

The Makah Indian tribe of northwest Washington has waited more than 70 years to return to the Pacific to hunt gray whales. For some, the last five months have been among the longest.

Dozens of reporters stampeded out west in September of last year, responding to report on the story that the tribe's first whale hunt in decades was underway. Protesters came with huge ships to block the path of the seafaring whalers. But since October 1 - when the tribe was officially cleared to hunt - the Makah have yet to venture into the Pacific to search for a whale. Foul weather, inexperience, mechanical problems and disagreements over procedures have conspired to keep their harpoons ashore.

Today, most of the reporters are gone, along with protesters and their ships. The Makah, meanwhile, are still trying to recreate a store of lost knowledge.

According to reports, some Makah elders remember tasting whale meat as children. Some of the women were taught how to prepare the meat, how to render the oil. Some of the men know how to fashion whaling canoes from tall red cedar.

So much time has passed, there is no one still alive who knows how to whale. But if any people have whaling in their genes, it is the Makah. They are the ones who could "find the way to resurrect it," says Ed Claplanhoo, a member of the Makah Whaling Commission and a former tribal chairman.

Meat can be had at Washburn's General Store, but most Makah supplement their diets with foods harvested from their rich land and sea: deer, elk, grouse, berries, roots, salmon, halibut, seal and shellfish. For centuries, whale was a central part of the Makah diet, as whaling was a central part of Makah life and culture. But since 1972, when whaling was banned across much of the world, many Makah have had to adapt to a more modern American diet.

Some of those who remember it miss it. Some who don't remember it would like to know what they are missing. Many believe a return to traditional foods would restore health to a community where diabetes and other problems are linked to diet.

Though no Makah practice whaling these days, the act remains a vital part of tribal tradition. The story is still told of how a thunderbird brought the whale to the Makah one hungry year long ago. Images of a whale - dressed in the Makah colors of black and red - decorate the local elementary school, homes, costumes and baskets. Huge weathered whale skulls and bones adorn front yards in the Neah Bay community of 2,000 tribal members.